American Juniors, June 24: Ten More Tries

Week two in the round of tens. Five will advance. Last week was surprising in the level of talent. Will week two measure of to the already high standard?

Disclaimer time. It is my job, my responsibility to be honest. If me picking apart 9-year-olds is gonna bug you, we have a fine assortment of other articles here for you at RealityNewsOnline. Here we go.

Ryan welcomes us to the show and tells us that there was a lot of crying last week. Kids who made it, kids who didn’t, parents, producer’s mascara has been running all week. So this week, he’s not wearing any. Rimshot.

Ryan intros the judges (with adorable childhood pictures), Deborah Gibson, Gladys Knight, and this week’s guest judge, Backstreet Boy Nick Carter.

And we start with the performances!

Jordan McCoy “Stupid Cupid”

Deborah says cute Jordan looked nervous in rehearsal, but came out strong and she will do very well. Nick notices that she loved the camera, had a great voice, he really enjoyed it. Gladys says she is Miss Personality, and it was good.

I have to admit that Jordan really looked at home in front of the camera, and her voice had a nice quality to it, but I really, really, hated her song. Really. And that squeak at the end of ‘stupid cupid’ made me want to fly into a rage. It was cute overload. I think that may hurt her. Let’s see how things unfold tonight.

Ryan makes plea to make sure we dial carefully when voting, “Someone got, like, ten million wrong numbers the other night,” Please, not another phone number conspiracy. I’ll quit. I swear.

Lucy Hale “Get Here”

Deborah says she had big, big power, and wonders if Lucy’s future isn’t as a solo performer. Nick says he got chills, and he gets chills when someone can really sing. Gladys says she is phenomenal, she is such a talent, and the group will need that talent; she gives her a standing ovation!

That’s more like it! Great job from Lucy. I felt like she rushed through the lyrics, she always seemed a quarter beat too early, but vocally she was great. Such power from one so young. It’s going to be fun to hear what she sounds like as that voice matures.

Quentin Caruthers, “You Are The Sunshine of My Life”

Deborah notes his charisma, loved that he made eye contact with the audience, but his voice needs a little work. Nick says he looked like he wanted to dance, and his voice will mature as he gets older. Gladys calls him a little ball of fire and said if he got in the group he’d “knock somebody over.”

Quentin was the victim of some bad advice. Here’s what I mean. The song was fine, bit someone told him he had to sing the first verse in a lower voice than his own. Bad mistake. Once he got to the midpoint of the song, and that upper-high register kicked in, he was clearly more comfortable (and it sounded more like his speaking voice), and he sounded 100 times better. It was like two kids were up there! But, he threw in Usher-inspired dance moves and a moonwalk. In “Sunshine.” No, it doesn’t fit. No it didn’t work. It made the whole performance kind of awkward. Who ever encouraged those out of place dance moves should be taken out back.

Lauren Klena, “L-O-V-E”

Deborah says she has more of a television personality, but she looked like she was having fun. Nick lies that it was a good performance, and having fun is all that matters. Gladys says she is adorable, and as she grows, she’ll become a special performer.

Here was the part I dreaded. It was terrible. The song was bordering on overly cute. Her stage presence was like a 5th-grade talent show. Sure, she’s in fifth grade, but the point of the show is to highlight special talent, not on-par talent. The choreography... whoever was behind that should be put out back, too. It’s too bad, because Lauren seems like a very sweet and poised little girl. It’s easy to want the best for her. She has a darling voice, but that voice, the song, the choreography, the immature stage presence was all a miasma of disaster.

Chantel Kohl, “Open Arms”

(During Chantel’s peformance, her Dad was quietly singing along as tears brimmed in his eyes. Total “awww” moment!)

Deborah says she was fantastic, thought she could open up more on the high notes, but looks like a pop star. Nick babbles something about her having a straight voice, not a lot of vibrato, and that would work well with a group. Gladys says that she is exotically beautiful, loved her voice, it “cuts” (meaning it stands out in harmony).

Chantel’s Dad had plenty to be proud of. Vocally, Chantel didn’t set the world on fire, but I understand exactly what Gladys was saying. We know from the prelims that Chantel’s voice is stronger than what we saw tonight, but she had the instincts to know that when the vibrato won’t work, stick to the pitch. She was dead on perfect pitched, and made for a beautiful performance. Those are the instincts of a pro. She sold me!